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Debates Ignore Questions about Presidential Power and Civil Liberties

HeadlineNov 20, 2007

A new study by the watchdog group Media Matters has found that Democratic and Republican candidates have been asked few questions about their views on executive power, the Constitution, torture, wiretapping, or other civil liberties concerns during the first seventeen presidential debates. According to Media Matters, there has been only one question about wiretapping, not a single question about the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act or renditions. The words “habeas corpus” have not once been spoken by a debate moderator. Candidates have also not been asked about whether telecoms should be granted immunity over their role in domestic spying. Last week’s debate ended with Senator Hillary Clinton being asked whether she preferred diamonds or pearls. The question was asked by a UNLV student who has since said that she was forced by CNN to ask that question instead of a pre-approved query about the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository.

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